Chapter 7 Liability and Student RecordsThis part due to be posted by July 24th.
Assignment:
1) Read Chapter 7
2) Discuss these situations, each group is to post a response on the Discussion Board
Discussion board 7.1 You are the principal of a small class A middle school. It has come to your attention that one of your students is HIV positive. You have been informed by his doctor. You anticipate that your teaching staff will be upset if they are not told of the situation. Considering confidentiality issues, how would you proceed? Respond to other students. (Gary and Jessica)
Jessica's take on DB 7.1: Since students, parents and guardians are not obligated to report HIV status to schools, I believe this is a moot issue as I would not disclose the information about the particular student to staff members. A student or student’s parent/guardian may choose to report her/his HIV status to school personnel but does not have to do so by law which is why I would not name the particular student living with HIV.
Upon a student’s disclosure of HIV status, the school must initiate procedures which will ensure privacy and maintenance of all medically-related documents. All health records and other documents which reference a person’s HIV status have to be secured by appropriate safeguards to limit access to these confidential records.
Since HIV is not transmitted through casual contact and, therefore, is not reason in itself to treat individuals having HIV differently from other members of the school community. The school cannot not discriminate against or tolerate discrimination against any individual who is HIV positive or perceived as being HIV positive. Faculty must always strive to maintain a respectful work and school climate and not allow physical or verbal harassment of any individual having or perceived as having HIV/AIDS.
The student living with HIV/AIDS has the right to continue his/her education without any disruption under the premise that privacy must be maintained regarding his/her medical condition and medical records.
I would however, inform the staff about the presence of an unnamed student with HIV in the school and discuss the proper procedures in dealing with blood-borne pathogens to alleviate fears. The importance of adhering to infection control guidelines so that all employees and students may work or attend school without being subjected to significant health risks is paramount and should be addressed to the faculty.
Teachers must understand that the decision to disclose a student's HIV status to schools is personal is in no way obligatory and the child's right to privacy must be assured. I would invite the nurse to present a discussion about HIV and general facts associated with the virus, protection against possible transmission, and how to deal with incidents involving bodily fluids to calm any fears by individuals. HIV prevention education and training for the school community and the community-at-large is important to quell fear and HIV and Blood-Borne Pathogen Staff Development would be required for all faculty.
Ideally, I would invite a speaker from the community with HIV to discuss his/her experiences with the staff so that teachers could gather some understanding about the hardships encountered with the disease to build empathy and clarify any misconceptions. I would also offer an optional follow-up Q&A session at another time.
Discussion Board 7.2 the Joe Price, Student records and breach of confidentiality scenerio in the book Page 215. Answer the questions that are posted on the discussion board.
1.What is the risk of sharing confidential information? There is a huge risk on sharing confidential information with a colleague. School personnel must refrain from idle chatter involving third parties and/or other teachers as this information will not be protected by qualified privilege. There is a reason why school records are maintained in a safe place and must be signed in and out when personnel access these records.
2.What is Price's defense if challenges about his divulging this information arises? None. The sharing of this information, while possibly harmless in the mind of Price, could result in suspension or worse. There is never a reason to share private and confidential information with another teacher. Anyone who has played the game "telephone" will know how this case would play itself out and it would be very difficult to defend oneself against a claim of slander.
3.How might the courts rule in this case if a challenge arises? The courts would rule against Mr. Price on the grounds of slander as well as breach of confidentiality. "Gossip or careless talk among school personnel...is not protected by qualified privilege." Qualified privilege has limits and if an educator acts unreasonably, there is no protection and they are open to legal challenges.
4. What advice would you give your teachers regarding confidential material? Discussion of any personal items about students is strictly forbidden and all such insights should be kept in confidence regarding the students - not to be discussed with anybody using first and/or last names. I understand the need to talk to individuals about situations that arise to ensure personal mental health at times, but names should NEVER be used in such instances. If there are certain situations as mentioned, the staff member should seek the guidance of the administration at the school regarding the circumstances in order to get sufficient assistance. All student records are to remain in a safe and secure place and should not be removed from school premises unless proper authorization is secured. There are numerous other suggestions on page 184 in the text including: steps in keeping accurate student records, avoiding labeling children, refraining from releasing any information over the phone, and maintaining student grade records to not be public information. (Angelique and Veronica)
Chapter 7 Liability and Student RecordsThis part due to be posted by July 24th.
Assignment:
1) Read Chapter 7
2) Discuss these situations, each group is to post a response on the Discussion Board
Discussion board 7.1 You are the principal of a small class A middle school. It has come to your attention that one of your students is HIV positive. You have been informed by his doctor. You anticipate that your teaching staff will be upset if they are not told of the situation. Considering confidentiality issues, how would you proceed? Respond to other students. (Gary and Jessica)
Jessica's take on DB 7.1:
Since students, parents and guardians are not obligated to report HIV status to schools, I believe this is a moot issue as I would not disclose the information about the particular student to staff members. A student or student’s parent/guardian may choose to report her/his HIV status to school personnel but does not have to do so by law which is why I would not name the particular student living with HIV.
Upon a student’s disclosure of HIV status, the school must initiate procedures which will ensure privacy and maintenance of all medically-related documents. All health records and other documents which reference a person’s HIV status have to be secured by appropriate safeguards to limit access to these confidential records.
Since HIV is not transmitted through casual contact and, therefore, is not reason in itself to treat individuals having HIV differently from other members of the school community. The school cannot not discriminate against or tolerate discrimination against any individual who is HIV positive or perceived as being HIV positive. Faculty must always strive to maintain a respectful work and school climate and not allow physical or verbal harassment of any individual having or perceived as having HIV/AIDS.
The student living with HIV/AIDS has the right to continue his/her education without any disruption under the premise that privacy must be maintained regarding his/her medical condition and medical records.
I would however, inform the staff about the presence of an unnamed student with HIV in the school and discuss the proper procedures in dealing with blood-borne pathogens to alleviate fears. The importance of adhering to infection control guidelines so that all employees and students may work or attend school without being subjected to significant health risks is paramount and should be addressed to the faculty.
Teachers must understand that the decision to disclose a student's HIV status to schools is personal is in no way obligatory and the child's right to privacy must be assured. I would invite the nurse to present a discussion about HIV and general facts associated with the virus, protection against possible transmission, and how to deal with incidents involving bodily fluids to calm any fears by individuals. HIV prevention education and training for the school community and the community-at-large is important to quell fear and HIV and Blood-Borne Pathogen Staff Development would be required for all faculty.
Ideally, I would invite a speaker from the community with HIV to discuss his/her experiences with the staff so that teachers could gather some understanding about the hardships encountered with the disease to build empathy and clarify any misconceptions. I would also offer an optional follow-up Q&A session at another time.
Discussion Board 7.2 the Joe Price, Student records and breach of confidentiality scenerio in the book Page 215. Answer the questions that are posted on the discussion board.
1.What is the risk of sharing confidential information? There is a huge risk on sharing confidential information with a colleague. School personnel must refrain from idle chatter involving third parties and/or other teachers as this information will not be protected by qualified privilege. There is a reason why school records are maintained in a safe place and must be signed in and out when personnel access these records.
2.What is Price's defense if challenges about his divulging this information arises? None. The sharing of this information, while possibly harmless in the mind of Price, could result in suspension or worse. There is never a reason to share private and confidential information with another teacher. Anyone who has played the game "telephone" will know how this case would play itself out and it would be very difficult to defend oneself against a claim of slander.
3.How might the courts rule in this case if a challenge arises? The courts would rule against Mr. Price on the grounds of slander as well as breach of confidentiality. "Gossip or careless talk among school personnel...is not protected by qualified privilege." Qualified privilege has limits and if an educator acts unreasonably, there is no protection and they are open to legal challenges.
4. What advice would you give your teachers regarding confidential material? Discussion of any personal items about students is strictly forbidden and all such insights should be kept in confidence regarding the students - not to be discussed with anybody using first and/or last names. I understand the need to talk to individuals about situations that arise to ensure personal mental health at times, but names should NEVER be used in such instances. If there are certain situations as mentioned, the staff member should seek the guidance of the administration at the school regarding the circumstances in order to get sufficient assistance. All student records are to remain in a safe and secure place and should not be removed from school premises unless proper authorization is secured. There are numerous other suggestions on page 184 in the text including: steps in keeping accurate student records, avoiding labeling children, refraining from releasing any information over the phone, and maintaining student grade records to not be public information.
(Angelique and Veronica)
Respond to each group's posting. (Josh)